


Lucky Shot

by redneterp



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: 1st AD Justin Oluransi, Alternate Universe, Emergency situation, Fanart, Film/TV crew, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-16
Updated: 2019-11-16
Packaged: 2021-01-31 13:27:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21446950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redneterp/pseuds/redneterp
Summary: Justin has booked the biggest job of his career to date, as the 1st AD for a new streaming series about a college hockey team. On his first day he meets Adam, and they instantly click as friends and coworkers. Will they be up to all of the stresses and unexpected challenges of the shoot? And has Justin found his best bro for life, or maybe something more?
Relationships: Adam "Holster" Birkholtz/Justin "Ransom" Oluransi
Comments: 28
Kudos: 42
Collections: OMGCP Big Bang 2019





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to the moderators for pulling this together, and to Allegra for support early on.  
Huge thanks to [Lukutoukka](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lukutoukka) for the last-minute beta, any remaining mistakes are my own.  
As always, thanks to Ngozi for creating this universe for us to play in.
> 
> The spectacular artwork is by [mpmi0801](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mpmi0801), who went above and beyond in creating pieces for this work. Thank you!
> 
> Edit to note: The first chapter dives right into the film world and lingo (links to definitions of terms/roles are at the end of the first chapter and then as needed, for those who are interested), later chapters are less lingo-heavy.

**June 25, 3:23pm. Day 2 of principal photography**

“Justin for grip.”

“Go for Justin.”

“What’s the ETA on that shade?”

“Uh, 10 minutes.”

Justin took a deep breath before replying, “try and make it 5.”

“Copy that.” 

Justin rubbed his forehead, trying to break some of the tension of the day. Day 2 of shooting, and it felt like everything was going wrong. It had been cloudy and foggy all day, humid with a light rain, slowing everything down. He’d planned his shot list accordingly, filming outdoor scenes from episodes 3 and 4 where the gloomy weather would fit the late-fall aesthetic, but then just a few minutes ago the sun unexpectedly emerged from behind the clouds. Hall still wanted his close-up shots, but the light no longer matched the long shots already in the can of the walk-and-talk. So now they were on hold while Pacer (or was it Ollie?) rigged up a mobile shade to block their leads, and Justin felt his day slipping away from him.

True to his word, though, six minutes later the shade was in place, and Murray and his camera operator approved the lighting and repeated their camera tests. And then the talent were back in place, last looks complete, and they were ready to shoot. Justin waited for Hall’s nod, then reached for his walkie mic. “Ok folks, lock it up!” 

After a quick glance around to ensure everyone was in place, he called out his series of cues as they were echod and confirmed, “Picture’s Up ... Roll Camera ... Roll Sound.” Justin took a deep breath. Maybe he could salvage today’s schedule after all.

The weather cooperated for the rest of the afternoon, and the talent seemed to be getting over their first-day jitters, starting to settle into their roles and understanding what Hall wanted out of their performances. They got through the rest of the shots with fewer takes, ending the afternoon 5 minutes ahead of schedule. And a good thing, too, as dusk was falling a bit earlier as the clouds rolled back in. At least they had all the shots from that scene and wouldn’t need to match the light in pickups.

“Are we good, Coach?” Justin asked.

“Yup, you can call it,” Hall replied. “Though are you really trying to make that nickname stick again? What was yours again, eh?” 

“Umm, I forgot.” Justin bluffed, turning back to the assembled cast and crew. “Ok folks, that’s a wrap on the day, thanks for pulling it off! Call sheets will be in your email shortly, see you tomorrow!”

And then more quietly into his walkie for those at base camp and the PAs on traffic duty, “that’s a wrap folks, thanks.”

On cue, River appeared at his side. “Weather report still calls for clearer skies tomorrow, so I think we’re good. Any revisions before I send it?” he asked, holding out his tablet. Justin took the tablet and scrolled through the call sheet as they walked back to base camp. “Looks good. We’ve got most of the principals on set tomorrow, between the BBQ scenes at the Haus and the frisbee scenes, and then all the background players in the afternoon too. Is everything set?” 

“Yup, wardrobe and hair and makeup are ready for the onslaught, transportation has pickup times for the lot of them, and I’ve got the sides all ready to send.”

“Good, you can send the sides and sheets. And we’ll need you on crowd control for the background players for the Quad scenes.”

“Copy that,” River said, as they reached the ADs’ corner of the production trailer.

“Thanks, man,” Justin replied, grabbing his water bottle before heading to the production desks. As he settled on the couch across from Adam’s desk, he felt his phone buzz in his pocket. Pulling it out to check, he saw the notifications that the call sheets were in his email and the shared production drive already. River was proving to be a good 2nd AD, behind that calm exterior he was a fast learner, observing and planning ahead. If he kept it up, this might turn out to be a good shoot, Justin thought. He pulled off his snapback, leaning his head back and stretching his tight muscles as he closed his eyes for just a second.

His brief rest was interrupted by a weight dropping onto the couch next to him. 

“Bad day, bro?” Adam asked, knocking his shoulder into Justin’s.

“Uh, not terrible, once we got past the uncooperative weather. I guess I just need to get back into the swing of long days on-set,” Justin replied, pulling himself back to a sitting position. “All right, let’s get these reports written so we can get out of here, eh?”

“Eh?”

“Yeah, yeah. Says the guy who’s from Canada’s backyard. So, we got all the shots for the scenes on the schedule, and once he got some workarounds for that half-hour of fucking sunlight Murray seemed happy. Did Denice get you the logs?”

“Got ‘em, copy’s already in the football.”

“Sweet.”

They traded the occasional chirps while finalizing production reports for the day, working as efficiently together as they’d done since they’d met. Justin did his final check-ins with the department heads as Adam collected the final crew timesheets, and then they were off to the crew parking lot. As he settled into the passenger seat of Adam’s car, Justin thought again that it was pretty sweet to have a friend to carpool with after a long day. While it felt like he’d known Adam forever, it was in fact just over a month since they’d met, and in that time they’d gone from complete strangers to roommates and Best Bros.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some possibly-helpful links explaining crew roles and terms:  
https://filmmakermagazine.com/95242-what-everyone-does-on-a-film-set/#.Xc4eAC0ZM_V  
http://www.listeninglistening.com/uploads/6/4/4/8/6448263/crew-roles-and-departments-guide.pdf  
http://www.anonymousproductionassistant.com/glossary/the-football/


	2. Chapter 2

**Two months Prior**   
**May 13, 7:32am. Pre-production day 1**

Justin power-walked through downtown Boston, dodging puddles left from the rainfall overnight. The wind was picking up, clearing away the clouds and fog that had delayed his flight in from Toronto the day prior, allowing the early-morning sunlight to peek between buildings as he hurried towards the production office. He decided to take the change in the weather as a sign that this project was off to a good start. He had woken up long before his alarm went off, and decided that walking might help settle some of his first-day jitters. It helped a bit, though he was still ridiculously early, arriving a good 20 minutes ahead of schedule. Thankfully, someone from the office had left a list of the team members with building security, who let him up. As he settled into the elevator, he heard a loud voice echoing in the lobby.

“Yo, hold the door!” 

Justin tapped at the buttons until the door slid back open, revealing a giant white guy with his arms full, carrying a stack of boxes of treats and coffee cups.

“Thanks, bro,” the guy said, stepping into the elevator next to Justin.

“No problem. Which floor?” Justin asked.

“Fourth.” The guy replied, peering around his load at the panel, where the ‘4’ button was already lit up. “You too?”

“Yeah, I have a meeting in 402.”

“No way, are you Justin?” 

As Justin nodded, a giant grin broke out on the guy’s face, revealing a row of chiclet teeth. “Nice to finally meet you, I’m Adam Birkholtz, UPM for the project. I’d shake your hand, but...” he shrugged, nodding at the boxes in his arms, which shifted precariously. “We haven’t hired an office PA yet, so I’m on crafty duty today. Coffee and baked goods to start things off right.”

“Dunkins, eh?”

“Not a fan?” Adam asked.

Justin shrugged, “Haven’t tried it. I guess I’m more of a Timmies fan, if we’re talking coffee-slash-doughnut chains.”

“I get it, dude, I grew up in Buffalo. But don’t let people around here hear you say that, there is some fierce Massachusetts loyalty to the Dunk. I’ve lived here long enough that it’s grown on me, though.”

“Good to know,” Justin laughed as the elevator slid open on the 4th floor. He stood back to allow Adam and his cargo to exit first, noting that the guy easily had a couple inches on him. Since he’d stopped playing hockey, he didn’t encounter many guys who were taller than him, and the guy was built like a brickhouse, too. Before his brain could catch up with his mouth, he found himself blurting out a question as they walked down the hallway, “I gotta ask, man, did you play hockey by any chance?”

Adam laughed. “Yeah, I played since I was a kid, then a couple years in juniors in Waterloo and four years of college hockey, playing D.”

“We were practically neighbours, then. I was a D-man too, and played through university at York.”

“S’wawesome!”

At Justin’s puzzled look, Adam explained, “it was a saying for my college team. Here, hold these,” he added, shoving the stack of boxes towards Justin, “it looks like we got here before Samira, I gotta find my keys.”

Justin grabbed the boxes of baked goods as asked, and once inside followed Adam through to the conference room. They dropped the coffee and baked goods on a side table and continued to chat about hockey as they set up the room. Justin got his laptop connected to the projector and opened his preliminary breakdown in Celtx, while Adam grabbed the stack of paper copies of the scripts from Samira’s desk for those that were more old-school.

By the time the rest of the team had trickled in and found their seats, Justin felt like he and Adam had known each other forever. Justin realized he had been so caught up in chatting and chirping that he’d forgotten to be nervous about taking on his biggest project yet. With that realization the nerves tried to return, so he took a few deep breaths to settle himself. Once all the seats were filled, Adam cleared his throat to get everyone’s attention and call the meeting to order.

“Hi everyone, on behalf of the production team, welcome to pre-production for _Lucky Shot_. I’m Adam Birkholz, UPM,” Adam began. “I’m sure you’ve all read the emails, but as a reminder especially to those of you more familiar with episodic tv projects, we’ll be shooting the entire season at once. Due to location availability, particularly the arena at Samwell, we’ll be shooting out each location for all episodes, beginning with all the exterior and other location shots at the college. Second block is all of the shots at the arena including the on-ice action, before the company move to the stage for the bulk of the interior shots, so this week is crucial to nail down all the details. We have two days here for the page-turn, then we have the tech scout on-location at the college Wednesday and Thursday, before we meet back here on Friday to hash out any final details. As requested,” Adam nodded towards the director Hall, “we have a storyboard artist, Ngozi, joining us Wednesday through Friday. Any questions?... Then I’ll turn the meeting over to Justin.”

“Thanks, Adam. I’m Justin Oluransi, 1st AD, and my email address is on the screen. If you’re not sure I have your address, or if you don’t yet have a link to the team view of the breakdown in Celtx, drop me a line now and I’ll add you. You’re welcome to use hardcopies of the scripts for your personal notes, but the cloud version is the official and most detailed breakdown. Before we begin, let’s do a round of introductions, and since this is a show about hockey, let us know your connection to the game. As I said, I’m Justin, I’m Canadian, and I was a competitive hockey player for about a decade before getting into the film world. Next?” he asked, turning to the man at his left.

“Uh, hi, I’m Jack Zimmermann. I co-wrote the screenplay based on the first two books in a YA series that I wrote, and, uh, I’m one of the producers. I used to play hockey, too,” he finished quietly, rubbing at the back of his neck. Justin caught Adam’s eye as he laughed to himself. The dude played in the NHL for 4 years, even won the Cup once, and all he could say was that he used to play? Maybe Jack’s infamous awkward humility wasn’t a media-relations gimmick after all. Justin tuned back to the group to hear the next intro from the tiny Black woman to Jack’s left.

“Hi, Denice, script supervisor. I grew up in California in a football family, so unlike these guys I’ve never played hockey, but don’t think that means you can slack off on me!” 

The rest of the team chuckled, and continued to introduce themselves. They seemed like a great team, with a mix of fresh and experienced folks, and a genuine star in Alicia Zimmermann as the showrunner. Justin had a good feeling about this production.

**May 16, 12:14pm. Pre-production day 4**

As he waited in line at the cafeteria Justin stretched, flexing and extending fingers that were stiff from taking notes. Day two of tech scout on-location at Samwell was going well, as Hall and Murray finalized their shot lists. They’d made it through the list of exterior locations the day prior, from the Quad to Frat Row and the frat house that would serve for the exterior shots for the hockey team’s house. This morning they’d visited a lecture hall and the library, and after lunch they had blocked the whole afternoon for planning at the final location, the arena, which had been inaccessible the day prior as it hosted the local skating club’s Spring Fling competition. Justin smiled in anticipation. It had been too long since he’d been on the ice, and while he didn’t expect to get a chance to skate, visiting a rink still felt like coming home.

Once at the arena, they visited the off-ice areas first, and after much discussion between the DP Murray and the gaffer Bill, they decided there would be enough room to shoot in the locker room, instead of needing to build a replica set on stage. Justin made a note to adjust the shooting schedule accordingly, as there were scenes in the locker room in at least 5 of the 8 episodes. As they continued down the tunnel and emerged just behind the home team’s bench, Justin heard Hall let out an audible gasp at the sight of the giant windows making up the south wall.

“That light! The location photos didn’t do this place justice, the natural light from those windows is stunning. We need to be sure to get the sunrise through those windows for the checking practice scene in episode 4.”

“Got it, Coach,” Justin replied, adding to his notes. 

Murray agreed, and then cast a critical eye on the rink itself. He turned to the locations assistant, “can we see the overhead lighting on full, so Bill and I can figure how much fill lighting we’ll need?” 

As Lukas went to find the rink manager to power up the whole bank of overhead lights, Murray continued. “It helps that this place has been set up to allow for game broadcasts, so we’re set for wide shots,” he said, pointing out the elevated platform behind the east stands, and the small alcove for a camera between the penalty boxes at ice level. “For the rest, we should be able to do a mixture of crane and steadicam.”

“Agreed,” Hall said, “although I would love to really take the viewer into the action, right out on the ice. Can we do some on-ice shots flowing with the action?”

“I can get shots using the steadicam vest, but my camera operator isn’t a skater so they’d be more static, standing on ice for face-offs, maybe a slow walk. We’d need to bring someone in for those shots.”

“I’ll confirm with the boss, but we should have some space in the budget to bring in a steadicam operator for a few days. And I know of a guy,” Adam offered, “who played college hockey and did some sweet action videos of his team.”

“Can you get a demo reel of his work?” Hall asked. “If we like what we see, I’d like you to find a way to bring him in, those shots will really help bring the games to life.”

“Will do,” Adam confirmed.

“Any of you willing to strap on some skates and get on the ice?” Hall asked. “If we can get as many shots as possible planned today, that will really speed things along during photography.” 

“Sure,” Justin volunteered, passing his iPad and notebook to River to take over note-taking duties.

Adam and Jack also agreed, and so with skates from the rental shop and sticks and pucks that Justin sweet-talked the rink manager into liberating from the spare equipment room, they took to the ice. As they skated easy loops to warm up followed by some easy passes, Justin felt the urge to pinch himself. _How is this real life? I’m sharing the ice with one of my favourite NHL players. Maybe now mom will believe that something good has come from switching career paths from medicine!_

Over the next hour or two they went through various plays under Hall’s direction as Murray snapped stills, Ngozi furiously sketched storyboard ideas, and the rest of the team took copious notes for their departments. Adam filmed a few demo clips with his phone, skating backwards behind Justin as he defended against Jack’s 1-on-1 rush on goal, and pulling in close as Justin and Jack took turns checking each into the boards (at slow speed, as neither was wearing full gear, and Justin was not going to be the one responsible for Jack re-injuring his ACL). Once the team huddled on the bench was satisfied with the plans they’d made, they called in the skaters, and after a last few minutes discussing the remaining shots they would need in the arena, including shots of the teams and coaches at the benches and crowd shots, Adam called an end to the day.

“Thanks everyone for a really productive day, the van will be out front in 10 for those needing a ride back to the city. Otherwise, see you all back at the office at 8 tomorrow for a last run-through, so be ready to share any problems you’ve identified, and suggested solutions.”

After returning their skates, Justin settled into a seat next to Adam on the shuttle. He was sure he smelled a bit ripe after skating for two hours in his street clothes, but as Adam had done the same he hoped he didn’t mind. 

“Man, it was good to be on the ice again, bro,” Adam said.

“It’s been too long,” Justin agreed. “I wasn’t expecting to actually have time to get on the ice, even though I think I got the job partly because I used to play.” At least when Hall had emailed to ask Justin if he’d be free to be 1st AD on the show (they’d worked together on a few smaller productions back in Toronto), Hall said his condition for accepting the directing gig was that he wanted a 1st AD who understood hockey.

“We did totally use your hockey background as the special skill exemption to get your work visa,” Adam confirmed. “And it totally paid off! It felt like we’ve been playing together forever, bro, I just knew where you were going to be on the ice. Can you imagine if we’d played for the same school? Best d-pairing ever!”

“Yeah, we would have kicked ass! I already feel like I’ve known you forever,” Justin noted.

“Speaking of which, and you can tell me to f- off if this is too much, but my roommate’s moving out by the end of the month. He got a job in Providence so he’s moving in with his boyfriend after doing the long-distance thing the past two years. And so I’ve got a second bedroom available that’s yours if you want it, no pressure, but sharing with someone who understands the ridiculous hours we work instead of some rando from Craigslist would be sweet.”

Justin agreed, “Dude, that’d be so much better than living in a hotel for months!” 

A giant grin broke out on Adam’s face as he raised his fist for a bump, “Best bro roommates!”

Justin reciprocated the fist bump, and wondered if maybe he should reevaluate his stance on soulmates, because after knowing each other less than a week he and Adam were already finishing each others’ sentences and hockey plays, surely they were destined to be best bros. 

**June 13, 6:43pm. 11 days before principal photography**

Justin let himself into their apartment, dropped his bag, and kicked his shoes towards the closet with a groan.

At the sound, Adam’s head popped over the top of the couch, “Hey bro, there’s food!” 

“Sweet, let me just...” Justin gestured towards his room.

After changing into sweats, Justin settled onto the couch, grabbing a slice of pizza from the box on the coffee table. Adam nudged his shoulder, “So, how was boot camp?” 

Justin groaned. “They have so far to go. Some of them look like baby giraffes, wobbling as they stood up for the first time.”

“That bad?”

“Yeah, though at least Caitlin got some funny shots of the wobbling and falling. And the kid playing Cody actually legit figure skated for years, so he’s confident on the ice, just needs to learn to do it without those toe picks.”

“Hockey skates FTW,” Adam said, raising his fist for a bump. “How about the rest of them?”

Returning the bump, Justin continued, “Well the kid playing Marc was probably the worst of the bunch at the beginning, I was legit worried we’d need to rework the whole shot list to do all his shots with a stunt double, but by the end of the second session he was at least getting the hang of gliding. I still don’t know how a kid grows up in Montreal and doesn’t even try skating, but apparently he played basketball for years, so at least he’s used to the lateral movements? Dawn thinks he’ll get there on time. You guys found a good skating coach there, she gives clear instructions and works on all the steps to build skills, and she’s good at keeping the group in line.”

“Were they causing trouble?”

“Nah, just a bit of chirping. They’re good kids, and really trying hard. No diva talent, thankfully.”

“Good, or else a 13-week shoot would be a nightmare.”

“No doubt,” Justin replied, reaching for a second slice of pizza.

“How’d the hockey skills go?” Adam asked as Justin settled back next to him on the couch.

“I have to say, whoever had the idea to use floor hockey to teach them the skills? Genius. Paul mostly had them working on stick grip and passing drills, but they finished with a short scrimmage, and the kid playing the goalie actually managed to stop a few shots. Did you say you have a goal coach booked for next week?” “Yeah, the last three days of bootcamp. Think that’s enough?”

“It should be, enough to get the basic positions and stance, at least.”

“Good,” Adam nodded.

“I’ll be at the office the next few days, but I’m going to go back to the community centre next week to check on their progress, then meeting with Hall in case we need to revise some shots to work around really weak skills. And that is officially enough work talk for one day,” Justin said, grabbing another slice, “I am ready to relax. Whatcha watching?”

“30 Rock. Want to watch an ep? Or I could kick your ass at Mario Kart?”

“Oh, it is on, bro! You’re going down!” Justin said, stuffing the last of the pizza in his mouth and reaching for his controller. In the two weeks he’d been living with Adam they’d developed a fierce Kart rivalry (the neighbours may have banged on the wall once), trading victories back and forth as they were fairly evenly matched in skill. “I call Yoshi!” he mumbled around his mouthful of pizza.

“It is on,” Adam confirmed, grabbing his own controller.


	3. Chapter 3

**July 1, 12:52pm. Day 6 of Principal Photography**

“Cut!” called Hall.

Justin echoed the call on walkie before checking his watch. Eight minutes to one. “Are you happy with that take, or do you need to go again? We are close to lunch,” he asked.

“That was good, go ahead and call it,” Hall said.

“Ok folks, it’s time for lunch break. Scene 2-05 is in the can, we’re back here after lunch for 7-14.” Justin called to the crew on-set, before repeating himself on walkie. As the talent and crew made their way towards the catering tents, Justin looked for one of the PAs, and saw April on the sidewalk where she’d been on traffic duty. “April, you’re on fire watch. Set is hot-ish, props and set will need to do some minor revisions for the next scene. Larissa will make those changes as we’re blocking after lunch.”

“Copy that,” April replied.

Justin followed the crowd towards the circus, but broke off to the production trailer to go over the scene breakdowns for the afternoon. Five minutes later, he was interrupted by a knock at the door, followed by Tony, another of the PAs, popping his head in.

“Justin? Eric asked me to get you, he needs you at the catering truck.” 

“Why didn’t he just call me on walkie?” Justin asked.

“Um? He didn’t say?” 

Tony asked more questions than any PA that Justin had ever encountered, so the fact that he hadn’t asked the caterer a dozen questions before seeking out Justin raised some red flags, but Justin realized he was unlikely to get any further answers unless he followed the odd request, so he joined Tony in walking over to the catering area.

He passed through the tent where most of the crew were already eating. Seeing no obvious issues of concern there, he made his way to the catering truck.

“Ah, there you are!” Eric exclaimed, popping out of the truck. “Now, since y’all had to work through Canada Day while the rest of us will get a holiday for our celebration, I just had to do something to make the day a bit more festive for y’all.” He gestured towards the serving table, which was decorated with bunting adorned with the Canadian flag. “Now you grab yourself some food and actually sit down for a break today! Go settle yourself over there,” he nodded to where Adam, Jack, and others were sitting, “and I’ll be out with a special treat for you in a jiffy.”

“Copy that,” Justin said with a bit of a laugh. He may have a full head on Eric, but he’d quickly learned the little guy was not to be trifled with when it came to hospitality.

Justin filled his plate before settling next to Adam at the table. Across from them sat Jack and a new guy with a bristling moustache and the sickest flow, the likes of which Justin hadn’t seen outside a hockey rink in years. Moustache Guy and Adam were caught up in conversation, and Justin gathered that the two of them had played on opposing college teams that had quite a rivalry. 

At a lull in the conversation, Jack turned towards Moustache Guy, “Shits, this is the 1st AD, Justin. Justin, this is my agent, B. Knight.”

“You wound me!” Knight said, tackling Jack with a side-hug. “Am I not also your dearest friend?”

“Hmm, only if you let go of me,” Jack replied.

Knight released his octopus hold on Jack, and reached across the table to shake Justin’s hand. “Shitty Knight, at your service. Old college hockey nickname, much as I tried it wouldn’t stick in law school or when I started practice, but visiting here? A college campus and a show about hockey? I just had to pull it out again. Now, I have to ask, did you play hockey too?”

“Yup, played D through triple-A and then on my university team.” “ I knew it! What was your nickname?”

“Guys called me Ranser,” Justin answered.

“Hmm, Ranser and Birker, that doesn’t flow. Let me think... Ransom and Holster! The two of you would have been a sick D-man pair, I just know it!”

Justin turned to Adam, raising an eyebrow, and saw Adam nod in reply.

“Ransom and Holster!” they said in unison, over a fist bump. “Glad to be of service,” Shitty said, a hand pressed dramatically over his heart. They continued their discussion about hockey as they ate, comparing ECAC and OUA experiences, and chirping Jack about all the things he’d missed by going straight to the big show.

“So were the books a bit of wish fulfilment?” Justin asked as he finished off his plate. His cousin was a big fan of the series, and he’d borrowed the set from her when he first heard about about the potential gig. He’d been impressed at the warmth and sensitivity of Jack’s storytelling, blending humour with the classic YA coming-of-age story of a shy, queer hockey player finding acceptance in a world of collegiate hockey blessedly free of homophobia. “Yeah, in a way,” Jack agreed, but before he could continue Eric came bustling over carrying a tray at shoulder level.

Eric paused at the end of their table, and set down his tray between Justin and Jack. “I made you boys a special dessert today, in honour of the holiday, butter tarts made with real maple syrup. Now the internet tells me that whether or not to add raisins is a matter of much debate so I didn’t want to risk it, and made them plain, but if you want I can whip up another batch with raisins.”

“Without raisins is perfect, thanks Eric,” said Jack, reaching for one of the tarts.

Before he could take a bite, Shitty jumped to his feet. “Are you THE Eric Bittle? Shitty Knight, Jack’s best bro. And Jackabelle here has already told me so much about you, it’s an honour to meet you.”

“Shits…” Jack warned. Justin noticed that both Jack and Eric were blushing, and filed that away for future reference.

“Only good things, I assure you,” Shitty said. “Now why don’t you pull up a chair and join us?”

Eric offered protestations, but soon acquiesced, agreeing that John could deal with any last-minute requests at the truck. He grabbed a chair from the adjacent row, and squeezed in at the end of the table next to Jack. Once they’d all sampled and praised his baking, Shitty asked if Eric had also played hockey.

“Contact sports aren’t for me,” Eric replied. “Though I was a figure skater for years, even medaled at regionals as a novice and junior. I did some coaching once I moved up this way for college, to help pay the bills.”

Shitty declared that competing in an ice sport and producing kickass baking were “close enough, brah,” and thus Eric needed a hockey nickname of his own. After some deliberation, Shitty decided on “Bitty,” which led to some height-related chirps, which devolved into general chirping around the table. 

Before long, Justin’s walkie earpiece crackled to life, as River called out a two-minute warning. As Justin stood to repeat the warning for those remaining in the tent who weren’t on walkies, he marvelled at how quickly the time had passed, and how quickly the group had bonded, as if they really were close teammates. He clapped Eric on the shoulder and said, “Thanks for the Canada Day celebration, bro. You were right, I really did need a break. And the butter tarts were the best I’ve ever had, really.”

Eric insisted that he and Jack take the leftovers, promising to pack them up and drop off Justin’s share at the production trailer, where Adam swore to hide them in the fridge and not touch them himself until Justin could claim them before they left for home. With that, Justin grabbed one last tart before hurrying down the road back to the frat house exterior to prepare for the next scene.

**July 12, 2:11pm. Day 14 of principal photography**

“Hey boss,” Tony asked, popping in next to Justin in the lunch line, “Are you guys going to join in today?” Tony’s hands were occupied holding his lunch, so he nodded towards the open patch of the parking lot at the edge of base camp.

Justin turned to Adam, raising an eyebrow. The two of them had been reviewing the schedule, as always, but Justin knew they were on-schedule for the day thus far, and the shot lists for the afternoon and following day were straightforward, they could complete their reports and confirm the call sheet with River as they ate. Adam apparently agreed, as he nodded in response.

“Yeah,” Justin replied, “we’ll be there in 15.”

“S’wawesome! We can always use more D.” Tony said with a grin, before turning to join some of the other young crew already seated.

“I can’t believe you made that word happen,” Justin said, nudging Adam with his elbow. “Who, me?” Adam asked, ducking his head in an apparent attempt to look innocent.

“I’m pretty sure you’re the one whose college hockey buddies coined that phrase, and now you’ve corrupted all these innocent children to your not-a-word.”

“And so it begins…” Adam laughed, tapping his fingers like a cartoon villain as he reached the serving table.

Justin rolled his eyes fondly before grabbing his own lunch and following Adam to their usual table. 

As they ate, Justin saw that Will and Derek were already setting up, dragging out the barrel of sticks, and dropping cones to act as the goals. The lunch-break pickup games had started the week before, the brainchild of the boom operator Chris. On set the guy was focused and intense, steady on the pole and never falling in frame or throwing shadow. Once ‘Cut’ was called, though, he was cheerful and relaxed, quickly befriending many of the young crew members, especially the A camera assistants, Derek and Will. The trio worked well together on-set, and hung out together in the brief moments of downtime in the production schedule. 

At lunch the week prior, Chris had approached Justin with a request. The kid had heard from the talent about the floor hockey portion of the bootcamp, and wondered if the equipment was still around. He and his buddies had played hockey themselves into their teens, and thought it would be fitting to play a bit of pick-up when time allowed, and he even argued that it could be useful for the cast to hone their skills. After checking with Adam to make sure that doing so wouldn’t break a dozen insurance regulations, Justin gave the go-ahead with a few strict conditions (No playing near sensitive equipment. Soft ball only. Absolutely no checking, as there was no time in the schedule for delays related to road rash or broken bones. Everyone involved needed to be on-set and ready to work when time was called, any game-related schedule delays would result in permission being revoked), Adam got transpo to deliver the pile of gear that had been sitting in the corner of the production office the next morning, and the lunch break hockey tradition was born. 

Most days (schedule and weather permitting) a group of the crew could be found on the patch of cement behind the honeywagons during the last half of lunch break, blowing off steam with a quick pick-up game. Some days a few of the kids from the cast would join, under strict instructions from March that her costumes were not to be harmed in any way. And true to his word, Chris kept a close eye on the time with help from River (whose job duty was to monitor break times and timesheets), the gear was stowed away and everyone was ready to work on time, and the residual energy from the game seemed to counteract the typical post-lunch fatigue. While there were plenty of competitive personalities involved, regularly mixing up the lineups helped prevent any animosity for growing, and within days it was clear that the games were helping to keep crew morale high, and the bonds produced translated to on-set communication and efficiency.

On this day, Justin and Adam faced off against Will and Dex as the opposing D-pair. It was the first time they’d actually played together (beyond the drills and staged plays during tech scout), and yet they read each other as well as they did on the job, with seamless no-look passes and great positioning. In one play that could well go down in production legend, the kid playing Cody made a clever deke to get past Justin for what he thought was a clear shot on goal, only for Adam to appear from nowhere with a few quick strides and a long stretch to block the shot, maintain control of the ball, and get off a quick pass forward to Lukas who ducked past Will to score on Chris in the opposite goal. As he ran to join the team in a quick celly, Justin saw Caitlin on the sidelines, camera in hand, having apparently caught the whole play for her BTS promo clips. 

“Holtzy!” he cried, slinging an arm around Adam’s shoulders, “that was beautiful!”

“Got your back, Rans,” Adam said with a double-back-pat hug, “always.” (Yes, the nicknames Shitty had bestowed stuck, at least when a game was in-play).

Justin looked into Adam’s eyes, believing his promise, before returning the bro-hug. “Alright, let’s kick some ass!” he encouraged his team, as they lined up to resume play. 

And sure enough, they were victorious, leading the other team 3-1 when time was called. As they power-walked back to the production trailer where he’d had stashed his walkie and ipad, Justin decided this could well be the best crew he’d ever work with. While the days were long and the work challenging, he felt truly lucky that his first time as 1st AD on a major production was going so well.


	4. Chapter 4

**July 29, 1:10pm. Day 25 of principal photography**

The swish of skates echoed quietly across the ice surface as a pair of actors skated in slow circles, allowing the sound department to pick up clean wild sound. Once the production sound manager nodded his approval from the video village set up in the first row of the stands to his right, Justin called out from his spot in the open penalty box. 

“Thanks guys, and back to one, picture’s up!”

He ran through the sequence of calls, repeated by April on the walkie. Will called, “Scene 3-04-A, take 1, marker,” clapped the slate and slipped across the ice as quickly as he could before ducking into the home team’s bench. Once he was over the boards and out of sight, Hall called “Action.” The actors resumed their easy loops around the left side of the rink, as Connor skated a short distance in front of them with the steadicam. Justin was impressed with his skills, skating backwards while maintaining a steady distance to get close-ups of Marc and Cody chirping and flirting their way through an extra skating practice. Having the on-ice close-kups would really complement the wide shots they’d laid down earlier.

After the first take, Hall made suggestions to the actors while Dawn joined them on-ice to suggest slight changes in stance and technique (Marc was supposed to be checking Cody, after all). The second take was better, and flowing smoothly, when during the second-last line of the scene the overhead lights in the arena flickered and went out. With barely a wobble in the dialogue, the actors and Connor kept shooting until Hall yelled “Cut” to end the shot, though the sudden drop to semi-darkness would likely render the take unusable.

Justin thumbed his walkie to repeat “Cut” before exiting the side door of the penalty box to join the crew huddling by video village. 

He arrived in time to hear Bill the gaffer speaking. “I don’t think it’s just one circuit of lights, it seems like the whole building is down. The tunnel lights are down, too,” he added, nodding towards the tunnel to the dressing room behind the team bench. 

“Was this us?” Hall asked. “Shouldn’t be, we aren’t running anything off their grid, everything is from our genny and truck, and looks like that’s still fine,” Bill said, gesturing to the row of monitors still lit up. “I’ll have our crew check all our equipment, but we’ll need to speak with rink crew, I figure.”

“On it,” Justin nodded, activating his walkie, “Justin for Tony.”

“Go for Tony,” the PA replied. He was stationed on lockdown watch in the entryway concourse, nearest to the rink manager’s office.

“Can you check the office for Johnson, and ask him to join us, please?”

“Copy that.”

With that taken care of, Justin took a look around the arena. Connor and the actors were still on the ice, and he motioned to April to ask her to call them over. As they took a seat in the penalty box, Justin checked his watch. Four minutes since the lights had flickered out, and they had not yet come back on. The arena around him was dim, with just the light from the production monitors and the faint glow of emergency lights along the concourse and exits, though it was brighter at the other end near the large bank of windows. They’d elected to use the arena lights instead of production lights for all the scenes on the rink itself, as it gave the most authentic light and was most practical for action shots. If the power stayed out for much longer, though, it would seriously compromise his shot list for the day.

“Attention, please,” Justin projected his voice to address the assembled team. As the conversations settled and the crew and cast turned towards him, he continued. “It seems we have a bit of a delay as we sort out the power issue, so let’s take five, but please remain in the building. As a safety reminder, be cautious in dark hallways and rooms, please don’t get injured. Thank you.”

While most of the crew settled on the spectator’s benches, Justin took a few steps to the side, again activating his walkie. “Justin for Adam,” he called, hoping that Adam was in the trailer or near someone on walkie. 

After a few seconds pause, he heard the reply “Go for Adam.”

“Go to 2?”

“Switching,” he heard, before toggling the channel. 

“I’m on 2,” said Adam.

“We’ve encountered a bit of a delay,” Justin said, choosing his words carefully in case nosy parties had followed them to the private channel. “The main lights in the arena are down, we’re contacting the rink manager. Our electric on the genny seems fine, but we need the lights to film.”

“Copy that. I was just on the phone with main office a couple minutes ago, when the call dropped and my cell showed no bars. I thought it was just Verizon, but let me check … yeah, now it’s saying no service.”

Justin pulled out his own phone, as he was with a different provider than Adam, but his was also down. “Shit, I’ve got no service too. Do you think it’s a larger issue?” “Could be. Base camp seems fine, but we’re on the panels. Let me look into this some more, and I’ll get back to you.” Copy that,” Justin replied, “Back to 1.”

“Back to 1, copy.”

As he returned to the main cluster of crew, Justin saw Tony approaching along the concourse with the rink manager, and jogged up the steps to join them.

“Hi John, any idea what’s going on?” “Well, this narrative did require a central conflict,” the guy said, not making eye contact but instead staring into the middle distance over Justin’s shoulder. “Within the bounds of the plot, however, it’s nothing so simple as an overloaded circuit or flipped breaker. I’ve checked my electrical room and tried to reset the main breaker, the problem isn’t here, it seems the power must be out to a larger area. Now it’s my role to inform you that the ice cooling system also needs power to work and pump the coolant, so if the power stays out too long the ice will start to melt. So until the main power is back on, I’ll have to ask your team to stay off the ice surface.”

“Understood. Any idea when that might be?”

“I tried to call over to the power plant to see if they have any answers, but it seems this fancy new phone system the university installed won’t work either when the power’s down, so I’ll have to walk over there myself, then walk back.” “Thanks man. Could Tony walk down with you? He can update me by walkie, save a bit of time.”

“Of course,” John said, again staring over Justin’s shoulder as he spoke. “Always happy to provide relevant details to the narrative,” he concluded before turning and walked away.

Justin shook his head. _What an odd guy_, he thought. At least Tony seemed to be taking it in stride with his usual curiosity, as Justin could hear him asking John questions about the ice cooling system as he followed him back along the concourse.

Justin checked his watch as he walked back down the stairs, noting that more than 20 minutes had now passed since the power went out. That couldn’t be a good sign, he thought, especially on a warm summer day with not a storm cloud in sight, at least from what he could see out the rink’s windows. He sat down next to Hall, and passed along the info that Adam and Mr Johnson had shared. It was just past 1:30, and so after confirming with River that Eric could have lunch set out 20 minutes earlier than expected, they decided to call an early lunch break. They hoped the power might still be restored and allow them to get some of the day’s shots in after lunch, but it made more sense to break and use the downtime as the mandated lunch break instead of as dead time on set.

Justin stood again and addressed the on-set crew, “Attention team, we’re calling lunch now. Note the time is 1:35pm. Please also be aware that we’ve been asked to stay off the ice completely until after the power is restored and the rink manager gives us clearance to return to the ice. We’re hopeful that power will be restored shortly, so we will leave our equipment in-place for now as our shot list for the day was entirely at this location, as you’re aware. However, instead of returning here by 30 minutes after last man, please remain at basecamp for an updated schedule pending new information. Thank you, you’re dismissed.”

As he repeated the same message over walkie for the crew at off-set locations, he watched Chris remove the lav mics and packs from the talent. By the time he finished, March hurried over carrying 3 pairs of slides. Clearly she’d realized the guys in skates wouldn’t be able to make it back to the dressing room where they’d changed without crossing the rink, and she’d been proactive about finding a solution. Justin made a mental note, as he was always happy to see crew who anticipated and problem-solved instead of sitting back waiting to be instructed.

He assigned April to fire watch before following the crew to basecamp. He was half-listening to the chatter over walkie from the off-set crew as he walked, so it took him a moment to realize Jack had fallen into step beside him.

“This isn’t looking promising, is it?” Jack asked.

As one of the EPs, Justin figured Jack deserved an honest answer. “Honestly? I don’t think so. But we’re working on tracking down more info, so maybe we’ll know more in half an hour. At least it happened today, when we’re shooting with just a couple of the leads, and not on a day when we had a rink full of hockey players and spectators? But we’re supposed to be starting those scenes in two days, so...” he shrugged, rubbing the muscles he could feel tightening at the back of his neck.

“Well,” Jack said, clapping Justin on the shoulder, “a meal will make everything seem brighter, eh?” 

“Just the meal, or maybe the caterer serving it?” Justin chirped, elbowing Jack lightly. He’d seen some of the furtive looks between Jack and Eric, and Adam had told him how often he’d noticed Jack hanging around the catering truck chatting.

“Oh, uh…” Jack stammered as a blush rose on his cheeks.

Justin laughed gently, enjoying the momentary distraction from the shitshow this day was becoming. As they entered basecamp, he encouraged Jack that he thought he had a shot with Eric, should he want to take it. While Jack looked even more bashful and didn’t answer, Justin thought he noticed a hopeful look hidden underneath. The guy was one of the shyest and most awkward hockey players he’d ever met, but certainly not the robot the talk shows had pegged him as back in his playing days.

  


**July 29th, 2:00pm**

“Copy that. Thanks Tony, you can come back to basecamp. Back to 1.”

Justin settled back onto the couch in the production trailer with a sigh. Tony had radioed with an update from the university power plant, who confirmed power was out to the whole university, and as best as the electricians could determine, it was a regional issue. Thanks to Tony’s inquisitive nature, he’d learned that the university had backup generators that had automatically activated, which supplied power to a limited number of buildings, including one of the dining halls and the athletics building with the gyms.

Justin thumbed his phone on, but there was still no signal so he couldn’t even check social media or google to see what the fuck was going on.

A moment later, Adam ended his call, and spun his chair to face Justin. “More bad news. I finally got through to main office, thanks to whatever insurance policy insisted we have one of these,” he wiggled the sat phone in his hand. “Samira says the power’s out there, too, and from what they can see, all of downtown’s out. What a clusterfuck, bro.”

“No shit,” Justin agreed.

A knock sounded on the trailer door, and one of the transpo drivers, a middle-aged white guy with the classic Boston accent whose name Justin couldn’t remember, stuck his head in. “Hey boss, got a minute?” he asked Adam.

“Sure, come in.”

“So I was on a run,” the guy said, “picking up the talent with a late call time. We were a couple-a blocks from the hotel when the traffic lights went out, and let me tell ya, those intersections were a mess. Boston drivers,” he shook his head. “So once I made it onto I93, traffic was moving and I made up some time, but the last two miles before the school here were all backed up again with the lights still out. I pass three gas stations on that stretch, and all of them had cars backed up out onta the streets, seems none of the pumps are working. Radio said it’s like that across the whole state, and if we can’t fuel up, we can only make a limited number of runs. Captain said to let you know?”

“Thanks, man. Wait, what was that about the radio? Did you hear something?” Adam asked. Justin guessed that Adam had forgotten than car radios could be used for something other than listening to cast recordings of his favourite musicals. “Let me tell ya, there’s a lot of static on the dial, but one of those AM news stations was still broadcasting. They said it seems like most of Massachusetts is blacked out, maybe all of New England, from what reports they’re getting.”

“Radio...” Adam glanced around the trailer, obviously looking for something that wasn’t there, before standing, “do you mind if we come listen?”

“Sure, I’m parked just over there,” the driver said, leading the way out of the trailer. “I can run the radio off battery for a few minutes, no problem.”

Once they reached the transpo SUV, Adam and Justin huddled outside the driver’s window to listen. Sure enough, the tinny voices on the AM station were reporting widespread power blackouts through Massachusetts and neighbouring states. The driver thumbed the controls to check for other stations at Adam’s request, and after a bit of searching picked up Boston public radio in time to hear reports that cities in Pennsylvania and New York were dark as well. No obvious cause was yet reported, no catastrophic events or bad storms.

“Fuck, it’s like that blackout when we were kids all over again,” Justin said, “remember that? Hydro was out for, like, the whole east coast two days.”

“Not us, bro,” Adam replied. “Most of Buffalo still had power, including our neighbourhood. I remember seeing pictures of NYC on the news, though.”

“Boston was fine, too,” the driver added as he turned off the ignition and the radio cut out.

“Also, hydro? Is that another weird Canadian thing?” Adam asked as they left the parking area after thanking the driver.

“Dude, that’s what it’s called. Are you going to turn this into another milk bags thing?” Justin asked as they walked past the generator truck. “This is not the time.”

“Maybe not, but we’re totally coming back to it later.”

“Duly noted. But bro, we need to figure out a plan, like, now. Lunch break must be almost over, lemme check,” he said, activating his ever-present walkie, “Justin for River.”

“Go for River,” the reply came.

“What’s the time remaining from last-man?”

“We’re at... four minutes out.”

“Thanks. Can you ask everyone to hang tight at basecamp for another ten, then bring Hall and the showrunners and meet me at the production trailer?” 

“Copy that.”

Justin turned to Adam and asked, “So is there a tab in your logistics spreadsheets for a massive blackout?”

“Not exactly,” Adam said with a rueful snort, “though there is a severe-weather plan, like if the remnants of a hurricane hit Boston, so I guess we can adapt that one? God, this is what we get for saying just this morning that we were on-schedule. It’s like we jinxed things. Or maybe it’s a vengeful ghost?”

“First, there are no such things as ghosts! And secondly,” Justin added, pulling open the door of the production trailer, “that would be a hell of a jinx to knock out the power grid to half your country.”

They continued to chirp each other, ignoring the office PA’s eyerolls, for another minute or so until Tony arrived, balancing two plates on one arm with a handful of cookies wrapped in a napkin in the other. Eric had noticed that Adam and Justin hadn’t eaten, yet again, and sent Tony to deliver food with strict instructions to extract a promise that they would eat as they worked.

Reviewing the shot lists for the coming week as he absently chewed his lunch confirmed what Justin had already suspected, they really couldn’t continue until power was restored. If this had only struck a week or two earlier, they could have shuffled things around and made it through (provided the crew and talent could make it to and from location). Most of the shots in that block had been exteriors or classroom/hallway shots, with lights and equipment running off generator. But this last two week block at the college was all in Faber, with most days involving large numbers of day players and extras to shoot a series of hockey games. Even if they could find some way of replicating the arena lighting (which Bill confirmed would take way more lights and juice than they had available), without a functional ice surface it was all moot. Even the next day and a half’s worth of shots with the main cast (mostly scenes of hockey practices, and the initiation event on the ice) still wouldn’t be possible, even beyond the safety issues for his crew in a building gone dark. Justin thought he’d considered every known variable when he’d created the complex shot list with Hall back in the spring, but an apparently-massive regional blackout hadn’t been on his mental list. He was certain it would be from then on, however. Sometimes the what-ifs raised by his anxious brain proved to be useful. For now though, they needed a plan. 

Once Alicia, Jack, Hall, and Murray were ushered into the trailer by River, the emergency brainstorming session began.

“So everyone’s on the same page, we’re meeting to determine next steps as we’re unable to film at the arena due to what appears to be a widespread power outage,” Adam summarized as the small group settled in his office space. “From the news reports we’ve heard, several states appear to be affected, but there’s no reports of malicious or even suspicious triggers. While we can run our equipment off our own generators as usual, the ice rink requires a connection to the grid to keep the ice surface frozen, and we’re scheduled to be shooting in there for all of the next two weeks. We were doing well at sticking to schedule and budget, but given the circumstances there doesn’t seem to be an alternative to pausing production, so hopefully the main office can figure things out with insurance. I really don’t love shutting down after only a half-day filming, that’s a big hit, but it seems we may be forced to, unless anyone has any ideas?”

From his perch on the corner desk, River raised his hand. “Could we change an interior shot to exterior? We’ve only got four of the cast on-set,” he said, gesturing to the call sheet. “Marc and Cody were already here, and I just signed in the D-men who had a late call. Is there a scene with some or all of the four of them scheduled for later at the studio that we could do now instead?”

“Hmm, that might just work,” Hall said. “Justin?”

“Hold on,” Justin said, fingers zipping across his iPad as he flipped through multiple pages of breakdowns at break-neck speed. “How about episode 5, scene 7? The boys are trying to find Cody a date for Winter Screw. It’s set in the Haus interior with Marc arriving home to find the boys playing video games and chirping. Scene’s seven eighths of a page.”

Pages rustled as others flipped to the right page of the script.

“Agreed,” Hall said, “that could be changed to a conversation while walking to class or dinner. Ok with you, Alicia?”

Alicia nodded. “That would work well as a walk-and-talk. The dialogue will require a few tweaks. Jack?”

“Euh, yeah, I can do that,” Jack said.

“And we need to be mindful of the season, episode 5 would be mid-November. Do you have ideas?” Alicia turned to Murray.

Murray nodded, pulling up the gallery of location shots on his cell, “We could use the science building, the one just south of the first Quad. Along the south side, by the road, the grass is yellowing from the summer heat and there aren’t many trees. With careful angles and the right lighting and colour correction, it would work for an early winter-y scene.”

Alicia, Jack, and Hall all indicated their approval, which left Adam to address logistics. “We shot a scene on an exterior staircase of that building earlier in the shoot, week three I think?” he noted. “So we should be able to shoot there again, if we can reach University admin for approval. I’ll send locations over now.” “And I’ll confirm with wardrobe that they’ve got appropriate wardrobe for winter exterior,” Justin continued. If he had time to think about it, he would marvel at how easily he and Adam were able to complete each others’ sentences and continue trains of thought as if they could read each others’ minds. “And explain the situation to the talent. River can get the new sides to them as soon as Jack’s finished with his tweaks, so they can start working on the new lines. All in agreement with the scene switch?” he asked. Seeing everyone nod their approval, Justin continued, checking his watch, “We’re already at 15 minutes of dead time, so we’ll need to convene the department heads here for a very quick meeting, and pending location approval we can start blocking rehearsal by 3.” “What are you thinking for filming time?” Adam asked. “G&E will need a bit more time to load into a new location, but if we do steadicam, mid-shots and a couple close-ups?” Justin paused and turned to Hall and Murry to see both nodded agreement before continuing, “then 3 hours total.”

“Sounds reasonable.” Adam agreed. “That takes us to 6, so closer to a full day and then break a bit early. That’ll give me time to work on contingency planning logistics, if the roads are closed and we’re stuck here. 

“Before we go, can I have two minutes to confirm plans for tomorrow?” Adam continued. “Unless the power comes back soon and we get the go-ahead from the rink manager, we won’t be able to use the ice, correct? And the rest of the week is all scheduled to be shot in there.”

“Right,” Justin confirmed. “Two days of scenes with the full team, practices and such, then scenes of the hockey games beginning Thursday.”

“Ok, I’ll confirm with head office but if the power isn’t back by 5 I’ll call it that we’re shutting down temporarily due to extenuating circumstances, effective tomorrow am.” 

“Understood. I’ll check with you once the shots are complete so we can notify the crew accordingly,” Justin confirmed. “Any final comments?... Ok, we’ll pick up again in 5 with department heads.”

Justin and Adam each stood, and with a fistbump parted to their tasks. Adam contacted the location team while Justin praised River for his quick thinking that helped keep production rolling for a few more hours, before stepping outside to call wardrobe. As for Adam’s comments about a contingency plan, and possibly being stuck on location? That wasn’t something Justin had even considered, but he didn’t have time to worry about so he’d trust Adam to figure it out while he focused on guiding the crew through shooting a surprise unscheduled scene. 

  


**July 29th, 6:06pm **

“And that’s a wrap on the day,” Justin called. He glanced at the group of curious onlookers watching the filming and quickly decided that a detailed update (which he’d just confirmed with Adam would still be necessary) should be given in a more private location, without clusters of the summer students whose classes were cancelled eavesdropping. “Thanks to all for your hard work and flexibility in adapting to the change in plans today. All-hands update will be at basecamp in ... “ he turned to Bill, briefly releasing the mic toggle .. “10 minutes ok for G&E to load out?” Upon Bill’s confirmation he continued, re-engaging the walkie, “...15 minutes, at 6:20.”

Exactly fifteen minutes later, Justin looked up at the crowd assembled in the catering tent, and noted the last stragglers hurried in after finishing their tasks, in response to the two-minute warning River had called a moment before. It seems as though everyone had arrived as he’d been huddled at a corner table with Adam and River the past few minutes reviewing final details. With regional communications severely limited, having the crew on-site allowed for meaningful updates, as compared to the talent who weren’t on-set that day and thus proved more difficult to reach. Adam had confirmed with Samira that she had made the trip on-foot to the hotel where the cast were staying to advise those who’d had the day off but were expecting an early-morning pickup that production was on hold. She’d noted they were in good spirits, and the hotel seemed on top of meeting basic needs during the outage. River, however, reported he’d been unable to reach any of the hockey players hired as day players to fill out the team for the full-team practice scenes that had been scheduled the following day, as they’d all provided cell numbers for contact and the cell networks were still down. Yet another task needing a creative solution before this day was out.

“We ready?” Justin asked the others, and Adam and River both nodded in reply. “I’ll start, then are you ok to give logistics details?” he continued while standing, wiping sweat from his forehead as he readjusted his white snapback.

“Got your back, bro,” Adam confirmed with a fistbump, standing to join Justin as they moved to the centre of the row to best address the assembled crew. Justin knew they both had voices that could project, and none of this crew had hearing issues necessitating using walkies for amplification, so he spoke out in his best Hockey Captain-slash-1st AD voice.

“As you’ve all heard by now, a power blackout seems to have hit most of the northern-eastern states, including Boston and here at Samwell. We are thus unable to film in the arena as planned, both because the ice cooling system is affected and for health and safety reasons. We will thus be wrapping slightly early today as soon as this meeting ends, and production is temporarily on hold until power is restored. Adam will explain logistics.”

Adam stepped forward next to Justin, and he could see Adam shifting into his own Strict Captain voice (so different from the loud goof Justin was used to seeing in their rare downtime) before his voice boomed out, “As Justin explained, production is temporarily on hold due to an emergency event beyond our control. We understand that roads in and around Boston are a mess and that nearly all gas stations are out of service, and water pressure within the city is minimal. Due to the circumstances, we have thus activated our emergency contingency plans. For those of you wanting to return home or to your usual accommodations, you are certainly free to do so, and transpo can do one trip to the hotel for the cast on-set if needed. 

“For those who prefer to remain here on-site at Samwell, note that we continue to have power here at basecamp as we’re running off the portable solar array, so with that and the generator truck for backup, Bill tells me we could be fine for power here for up to a week covering basic operations. This includes the catering and craft services trailers and the honeywagons, and some trailers. Catering got their regular grocery delivery this morning, which Eric says he can stretch to 4 days or more if it’s a smaller group than usual, still at 2 meals a day. The university has a backup generator powering a handful of buildings and their water system, and they’re putting up stranded commuter students and staff in the big gym, the one across the parking lot from Faber. They’ve agreed to give our team a corner of the gym for those who choose to stay.

“To make it clear,” Adam continued, “once you sign out today you are off the clock, those who choose to stay here are not working and will not be paid unless I have already specifically approached you to request your services. Production is only providing emergency food and shelter as a courtesy to those who do not have a safe alternative. Whether you stay or go, your days are still on hold as per your contracts. Once power is restored and we’re cleared to get back on the ice, call sheets will be distributed as usual for the following am, so watch your emails. Uh, that’s it for me.” Adam finished, shifting a half-step backwards.

Justin took over again, “As you sign out today, please let River know if you’re heading home or staying on-site so we have an accurate count. As Adam said, once we have a restart day, call sheets will be forwarded to the usual email list and on the shared drive for department heads. I’ll also text all department heads with regular updates as soon as cell service is restored, so check in with your leads in case internet access is spotty and you haven’t received the call sheets. Any final questions?” 

Justin paused, and when no one spoke up, he continued, “Then we’re officially wrapped on the day. You’re all free to go, and I hope to see you all back in a day or two. Oh,” he added, as last-minute inspiration struck, “if anyone lives in the direction of Worchester and is heading back that way and can help with a brief task, please speak with me or River. Okay, goodnight!”

As the crew came to life around them, Justin sank onto a chair next to Adam. “Uh, today’s reports are going to be a mess to write,” he complained. “One benefit of wrapping early, I guess, is that we won’t be stuck so late writing them before we can crash. Oh wait, dude, I didn’t even think to ask. Are you ok to stay here?”

“Of course, bro,” Adam said. “I think I kind of need to be here, to get updates from the rink guy, and to be the contact for the school admin if the location guys decide to leave? I’d be out of touch at home if cells stay down. Are you ok with staying?”

“Yeah, same as you, easier to do accurate call sheets and stuff as soon as well have a restart time, especially if River doesn’t want to stay. And besides, you know your gas tank is running low, you totally said this morning that I was supposed to remind you to refill on the way home, so I think we’re stuck. And we at least have some amenities here, I’m pretty sure all we have in our fridge after weeks on set is a bottle of sriracha and a half-carton of eggs, not even a _bag_ of milk”—he nudged Adam with his shoulder—“so we’d be starving. And being on the fourth floor, probably no running water either.”

“But real beds. You may rethink your admiration of the amenities, my dear Ransom, once you see the mats-on-the-floor-with-dozens-of-random-people setup I was told to expect in the gym.”

Before Justin could reply, he heard a voice in his earpiece calling his name. River was at the other end of the same row of tables but surrounded by a crowd of cast and crew signing out so obviously couldn’t leave and so had called Justin to him. 

Once Justin approached, River spoke up, “hey, Joe says he’s going to Worchester and can help out,” he said as he pointed to the transpo driver from earlier. 

_Joe, that’s his name_, Justin thought.

“Yeah, the kids decided they wanted to stay here instead of heading back to the hotel,” Joe said, gesturing to the four cast members who were joking around with some of the young guys on crew. “Apparently they decided it would be an adventure?” he said with a shrug. “At least then I don’t need to deal with Boston drivers tonight of all nights. I’m going to head home for my kids, and I live just east of Worchester. What did you need there?” “A bunch of the players from the ECHL team based there are booked as day performers for all the hockey scene the next couple weeks. Tomorrow was supposed to be the first day on set for eight of ‘em, filling out the roster of the hockey team. Since the only contact numbers we have are cell numbers, River hasn’t been able to reach them to let them know what’s going on. We have mailing addresses for most of them, do you think you could stop by?”

“Sure, no problem.”

“Thanks man. I’ll grab the list from River. I’d say try the captain or one the As, and let them reach the rest of their guys. And if you can reach a phone that works, call Adam on the Sat phone to let us know if you reached them.”

“On it. We’ve got a landline at home, so that should be working,” Joe confirmed.

“You’re a lifesaver, man. We thought we might have to send someone driving out there, but without GPS directions they’d be totally lost. I’ll ask Adam to add the extra time to your hours.” He handed Joe all the relevant numbers before sending him on his way, quite relieved to have that task taken care of. Another weight off his shoulders. 

Rolling said shoulders as he headed for the office trailer, he was interrupted mid-walk by Chris from sound, who let him know that many of the younger crew had decided to stick around, and since there was some free time until sunset thought it’d be fun to play road hockey again. Justin gave them his blessing, but begged off joining them as he needed to finish reports. Privately, he thought it was a bit too hot to be running around, it had been in the mid-30s all day (whatever that was in Fahrenheit, he was never going to understand that ridiculous scale), and was still hot and humid. Despite living through many oppressively hot and muggy Toronto summers, he still preferred winter weather. _Maybe I should have thought of that before pursuing a career that has me standing outside for 12-plus hour days in the dead of summer_, he thought to himself as he escaped to the relief of the production trailer with its semi-functional AC.

Forty-five minutes later, the day’s reports had been completed by Justin, Adam, and River (who’d also decided to stick around), as well as whatever pre-planning they could manage with an undefined break and unclear re-start date. After grabbing sandwiches and fruit from crafty, Adam and Justin settled in the catering tent while River went to join the hockey game still in progress. The tent had become the de facto gathering place for the remaining crew who were enjoying the surprise downtime on what they had expected to be another long and busy work day. Per the list River had collected, about two dozen of the crew had chosen to stay, mostly the younger below-the-line folks. Many of the senior crew had kids and wanted to spend a day off with them, and most of the above-the-line folks picked comfortable hotel beds, except Jack who had apparently decided to stay, as Justin could see him in the catering truck chatting with Eric. 

Justin nudged Adam. “Think something’s going on between them?” he asked, nodding towards the truck.

“Hmm, they do seem to be spending a lot of time together. Do I need to talk to Jack, make sure he isn’t overstepping any boundaries since he is kinda in a position of authority?” Adam asked.

“I’m pretty sure it’s mutual,” Justin said as he watched through the truck’s window to see Eric laugh while patting at Jack’s arm. “Look at those heart eyes. I’ll try and catch Eric alone to ask, just in case, though. Any other gossip-worthy drama you’ve noticed?”

“Not yet, but the shoot is still young,” Adam laughed, before they lapsed into a comfortable silence, each crunching on an apple as they caught glimpses of the crew playing hockey down the row.

Two hours later, after enjoying slices of chocolate cream pie (“A crisis situation demands baked goods, that’s just the way it is, dessert makes everything better,” Eric had insisted while he served the pie onto napkins, as his supply of plates was limited without access to the dishwashing service), dropping their walkies at the trailer to charge, and finger-brushing their teeth sharing one tube of toothpaste between all the guys (Mandy had found two tubes tucked away in the makeup trailer, which she shared along with facial wipes for those who wanted them), the crew trooped over to the gym. Clusters of cots, gym mats, and yoga mats were set out in the main gym and smaller studios, housing a variety of stranded folks. The _Lucky Shot_ crew had been assigned a corner of the gym, where they arranged their assigned floor mats into makeshift rows before settling down. Justin expected to have trouble sleeping in a room with hundreds of other people moving about, but the exhaustion of six long weeks of filming quickly caught up with him and he fell into a deep sleep, curled on his side on a gym mat shared with Adam.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A couple more terminology links:  
http://www.ubcp.com/wp-content/uploads/Terminology-on-Film-Sets.pdf  
http://www.anonymousproductionassistant.com/2018/05/14/fire-watch-with-me/


	5. Chapter 5

**July 30, 6:40am. Day 1 of unanticipated downtime **

Justin woke with a start. His internal alarm clock was buzzing that they should already be out the door and on the way to work. He started to turn to grab his phone to check the time, but his motion was blocked by a heavy arm thrown across his chest. “Five more minutes,” a rough voice mumbled into his neck. _What? Who? Where?_ As his brain came more fully online, his eyes made out the details of the large room in which he found himself, dimly lit by emergency lights above the exit doors. _A gym. Right, blackout. Shutdown. Emergency accommodations._ It all came back to him. He tilted his head downwards, and saw the large blonde head smushed up against his shoulder. _Adam._ Clearly he was making the most of the rare opportunity to sleep in. Settling his head back onto his hoodie/makeshift pillow, Justin realized that this was the best sleep he’d had in a while, crammed onto a gym mat that should be too small for two giant former hockey players, yet was surprisingly comfortable. He let out a deep breath, then consciously matched his breaths to the slow, deep breaths of his Best Bro pressed up against his elbow. _Sleeping in really is the best thing ever,_ he thought as he followed Adam back into sleep.

An hour and a half later, murmuring voices and shuffling bodies on the surrounding mats pulled Justin back into consciousness, feeling better-rested than he had in months. He shifted and stretched, causing a sharp elbow to press uncomfortably against his bladder which pushed him those final steps to fully awake. “Uugh, bro!”

“Mmhgh,” a voice muttered into Justin’s bicep.

“No really, bro, you’ve gotta move your arm, or I’m gonna pee on you,” Justin warned.

“Uhmuhh,” was all he heard in reply, but at least Adam shifted his arm upwards to grab the collar of Justin’s t-shirt which relieved the pressure on his bladder.

Awake but trapped under the dead weight of his roommate/Best Bro, Justin turned his head to the left to watch his team slowly coming to life around him. On the next floor mat Derek from camera sat cross-legged, bleary and rubbing the sleep from his eyes. Two mats beyond him were Jenny and Mandy from HMU, with Jenny kneeling behind her friend arranging her hair into some sort of complicated braid before securing the end with an elastic from around her wrist. Wiggling his arm past Adam’s grip Justin slid his hand into his pocket to pull out his phone, then thumbed the power button as he tilted up the screen. 8:17am. And still the no-signal icon. _That answers that question_, he thought. 

Over the next couple minutes Adam slowly gained consciousness before moving his hand about, blindly patting at Justin’s chest and arm.

“Here,” Justin said, reaching up with his left hand to grab the coffee cup thankfully still upright just above his head. Popping open the lid of the makeshift glasses case he’d scrounged up the night prior, he pulled out a pair of glasses and pressed them into Adam’s hand.

“Dude, you’re the best,” Adam said as he slid on the glasses and turned onto his back.

“It’s like I know you, or something,” Justin chuckled as he pushed himself to a sitting position. “You can keep track of tens of thousands of dollars and dozens of people on a spreadsheet, but your glasses? Not a chance.”

Adam grumbled but couldn’t disagree as he also pulled himself upright before stretching his arms upwards above his head. Justin caught a glimpse of pale belly and light hair before looking away. “Sleep well?” he asked.

“So well,” Adam agreed. “I haven’t slept that well in months. You too?”

“Yeah, definitely,” Justin said as he gathered up his few belongings and got to his feet. Adam did the same, and then they made their way carefully between rows of mats to the doorway. They walked down the dim hallway and out of the sports complex, where they squinted at the bright sunlight. Once their eyes had adjusted, they shuffled down the path along the river and made their way the few blocks back to basecamp, chatting about nothing in particular as they had the rare chance to cross campus at a leisurely pace.

At basecamp, their first stop was at the honeywagons to relieve their bladders and brush their teeth. Justin tried to clean up as well as he could with a baby wipe while he laughed at Adam, who tried to wet and pat down his hair which transitioned from flat and smushed on one side to wildly poking up on top. After Adam’s third attempt somehow made his hair even more of a mess than before, Justin took pity on him and offered him his snapback to flatten it all down, and used damp fingertips to fix up his own loose twists. Once they’d agreed they were both presentable, they grabbed coffee from the table outside crafty and joined the small crowd of their colleagues huddled near the window of the catering truck enjoying the smell of food cooking. 

“Good morning, boys!” Eric called through the window. “Breakfast will be ready in 5, I asked Tony to be a dear and go wake anyone still sleeping at the gym. Y’all were out cold when I snuck out to come fire up the griddle, but Lord knows I wouldn’t be up either without an alarm kicking my behind on a day off.”

“No worries, man, there’s no rush today,” Adam assured him.

Justin nodded his agreement as he sipped at his coffee. Having a private power source during a blackout really was the way to go, he thought, as he realized that if they’d gone home they’d be munching on stale crackers and definitely wouldn’t have had any coffee. They’d made the right choice.

Once everyone had arrived, Eric and John set out platters of scrambled eggs and pancakes and they all dug in. As they ate, they discussed their plans for the day. Other than a few administrative tasks, there was still very little work that could be done until power was restored, so suggestions to fill the hours were made. Tony again proposed a game of road hockey, and with his enthusiastic questioning he convinced nearly the entire crowd to join in. Though the temperature already felt like it was pushing 30, Justin agreed to join in as well.

Once everyone agreed their breakfast had settled in their stomachs, tables were cleared and water bottles grabbed. Tony and Louis grabbed the hockey sticks as well as traffic cones that had been liberated from transpo, while Ollie and Pacer grabbed stacks of extra folding chairs from the tent. The whole crowd made their way to the usual playing surface beyond the far row of trailers, where they split into teams. At Jack’s suggestion, they split based on month of birth, giving two approximately equal large teams with enough extra players to allow for plenty of substitutions. Justin and Adam were on the same team, and lined up as first shift facing off against Jack’s team who had Chris in goal. Those not on the starting lines took seats on the row of chairs Ollie and Pacer had squeezed into the thin strip of shadow cast by the wardrobe trailer. 

Over the next hour or so, they all rotated in and out of play, participating based on levels of enthusiasm and energy, except those designated as goalies who were compelled to keep playing by their teammates. Chris had previously shown his prowess in the role, contorting himself in every possible direction to stop the ball, but the real surprise in goal was Bill. He hadn’t previously joined in the lunchtime games, saying he’d earned the chance to actually sit and rest during a break, so he was an unexpected addition to the group that day. No one else on the team was keen to be in goal, so they took him up on his offer to play the position, and were impressed by his skills. Being a couple decades older than the rest of them he flatly refused to attempt the splits or butterfly positions without pads, but he was still fast and agile in blocking shots otherwise. 

After Bill blocked another of Ollie’s shots, Justin heard Will (err, Dex, according to the nicknames-only-while-playing rule that Chris/Chowder had instituted) consoling him. “I don’t know why you’re surprised? Bill played on an elite team, he was even scouted for the Bigs.”

“How on earth do you know that?” asked Derek/Nursey, who apparently couldn’t resist engaging his usual back-and-forth with his camera-partner even when they were on opposing teams.

“He’s my uncle?” Dex said, “That’s how I got into the business. I worked as a lighting tech for a couple years before switching to the camera department.”

“Huh. Sweet,” Nursey replied.

Once the players were back on their respective sides, play resumed and Jack won the faceoff. He tried to deke around Justin, who managed to block the shot and steal the ball, then shot off a no-look pass to Holster who was playing forward. The ball landed right on Holster’s stick, and he fired off a one-timer that shot past Chowder’s elbow for the goal.

“Dude!” Holster yelled as he embraced Justin in a celly, “We are SO drift-compatible, Rans!”

Justin felt himself break into a grin as he slapped Holster’s back in return. “I’d pilot a Jaeger with you any day, bro.”

Releasing their embrace, they took their places on the “bench” to rest and rehydrate. Justin had his head tilted back to finish off the last of his water bottle when he heard a cheer from the opposing team, after Jack got one past Bill (somehow both of them had escaped the nicknames rule). A minute later, Justin was on his feet to cheer as April deked past Bagel to level the score. As a PA she’d been too busy to join the prior lunchtime games, but she put her collegiate-champion volleyball skills to use in a new sport and picked it up quickly. Bagel (the kid playing Marc, who’d earned the nickname by defending Montreal bagels as superior) had learned a lot in basecamp and the scenes they’d shot thus far, but hadn’t played D before and was still learning. Jack gave Bagel a pat on the shoulder in consolation before play resumed. Justin saw some resemblance between them, and thought he understood why Bagel was cast to play the lead character loosely based on Jack himself.

The teams were fairly evenly matched, and traded points and blocks back and forth for a while longer before most of the players decided it was getting too hot to continue, and elected to call the game as a tie. Chowder, Dex, and Nursey stayed behind, goofing around doing trick shots, while the others returned to the shade of the tent. 

After refilling water bottles and grabbing snacks, most of the crowd elected to hide out in one of the air-conditioned trailers. Justin and a few of the others settled in the production trailer. Someone dug out a couple pack of cards, and several lively rounds of card games ensued. Talk turned to board games, and Adam threatened to recreate Catan out of scrap paper to defeat Jack definitively. Justin was pretty sure that expansion of their competitive rivalry could very well permanently derail unit camaraderie, but lacking authority over either of them to ban the game, he went for distraction instead. 

“Any updates?” he asked Bill, who’d just rejoined the group.

“Our panels are working great, batteries are nearly full,” Bill said. “Helps that it’s a sunny day, so I shouldn’t need to turn on the genny. As for out there, the radio said they’re working on restoring power, disconnecting stations from the grid and starting them up one by one, so a couple-a cities are up and running in other states, they think rest should be coming online today and tomorrow. Boston’s still dark, for now. They still aren’t sure what triggered the blackout, but you’d think they would’ve learned from last time,” he shook his head. “I was still a lineman back in Maine in ‘03, and though we weren’t hit you can imagine the number of drills they did about preventing cascading failures, well...” 

With a bit of prompting, Bill shared stories about restoring power after windstorms, and how he switched from climbing poles to hustling around film sets. Distraction successfully achieved. The conversation flowed from there as they played and chatted, until they were interrupted by the crackle of the walkie.

“Hey, y’all, lunch is ready,” Eric’s voice called. 

Once most of the group had congregated by the food truck, Eric explained, “I changed up the menu and made empanadas, I decided to go with street food so we don’t need to worry about plates or cutlery. These ones are beef, and those in that dish are cheese, and there’s some veggie sticks - er, crudités - too. There should be enough for supper, too, so y’all don’t need to live off those energy bars,” he wrinkled his nose. “And after lunch I was going to try my hand at making some mini rustic fruit pies, if anyone wants to giving baking a whirl, you’re welcome to join in!”

After the as-always delicious lunch, Justin and Adam decided they should do a bit of work. After trying to reach both main office and the cast/above-the-line crew hotel with no response on either number, Adam grabbed Lukas and went to check in with university admin and Johnson at the rink, while Justin worked through the list of crew and cast who’d stayed, checking in with everyone. Returning from the production trailer which Bill had commandeered for a nap (“I’m too old to be sleeping on the floor, I’ll stay if I can use the couch” had been his only condition for staying to supervise the electric, allowing his best boys to head home), Justin’s last stop was at the food truck. He stuck his head in the door to see Jack, Will, and Chris towering next to Eric, apparently trying to copy his technique though their pies were mis-shappen and lopsided compared to his. 

“Good luck trying to make bakers out of these guys, Bitty,” Justin chriped.

“Bitty? Are y’all still on that one? I’ll have you know, I am average sized!” Eric insisted.

“C’mon, everyone needs a hockey nickname, Chowder here insisted,” Justin protested. “And it’s from your name, mostly?”

“It suits you, Bittle. Or Bits?” Jack added with a bit of a blush.

“Well all right, then,” Bitty conceded.

Leaving the boys in the truck to their chirping and baking attempts, Justin joined Derek at one of the tables outside. “Not baking with your boys?” he asked.

“Nah, I know myself, sharp knives and flames? Not my thing. I’ve been informed I’m a klutz if I don’t have my hands on a camera rig or a hockey stick,” Derek laughed. “How about you?”

“It’s full in there already, and I’m going to enjoy every chance to actually sit and rest on a film set that I can, store it up to last me for the next few years,” Justin replied. 

“So true.”

They continued to chat about a bit of everything - what led them into the industry, hockey, life. While they’d had a friendly rapport previously, in an I’m-not-the-only-Black-man-on-set way, they hadn’t had time for a relaxed chat previously, so they made use of the downtime to swap stories. After a while they were joined by Adam and Lukas with minor updates (no news from the school admin, Johnson reported the rink ice was getting quite soft and slowly melting).

The rest of the afternoon passed much the same way as the morning had, with the pseudo-summer camp feel. Small groups were chatting, playing cards, making use of the available trailers for naps, or enjoying Bitty and crew’s hand pies. As the sun started dropping in the sky after supper and the weather cooled down slightly another pick-up hockey game was started, which continued until dusk. After a few more games of cards in the tent, someone decided to call it a night as the mosquitoes started circling, to which the rest of the group agreed. After another night of half-hearted hygiene attempts, they walked over to the gym in small groups by the light of Will’s phone flashlight. Just as they reached the path to the main entrance, Adam paused, grabbing Justin by the elbow.

“Uh, you guys go ahead, we’re just going to, uh, check on something,” Adam said, gesturing vaguely towards Faber. “We’ll catch up with you in a bit, and you’d better save us a mat!”

The others continued on before Justin spoke up. “Bro, what do you mean we need to check something?”

“Un, there’s something I wanted to show you?” Adam said quietly, not his usual confident self. He led the way to what looked like a loading dock at the south corner of Faber, and up a short flight of stairs to a doorway, then paused to fish a key out of his pocket. “Johnson gave this to me this afternoon,” he continued as he slid the key into the lock, “said it was essential to the narrative? I dunno with that guy.”

“Sounds like him,” Justin agreed as they stepped inside the dimly-lit unloading zone.

Instead of heading down the hall in the direction of the rink, Adam nodded towards another doorway in the corner. “This way,” he said, pulling open the door to a stairwell. 

They continued up several flights of stairs lit only by dim emergency lights before reaching another doorway that led onto the roof. “Here we are,” Adam said with a flourish of his hand towards the broad expanse as he stood in the doorway. “You were saying last night that you remembered how many stars you could see when you had that blackout as a kid, so I thought you might to do a bit of stargazing?”

“Bro,” Justin said with feeling, “that is truly s’wawesome!”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, c’mon then,” Adam said, letting the door swing nearly closed. He’d wedged a doorstop into place leaving the door open just a crack, and a sliver of faint light reached across the roof before fading into darkness. He reached for Justin’s hand, and led him around the corner of the stairwell bulkhead and then a few steps out onto the roof before stopping. It really was incredibly dark, with no moon in the sky, and only spots of faint light from the few buildings on campus that had power. 

“Want to sit?” Adam asked, with a slight tug at their still-joined hands.

“Yeah,” Justin agreed, settling onto the concrete roof, still warm from the heat of the day. Once seated, the bulk of Faber blocked out nearly all the lights from campus, leaving them in near-total darkness. Justin leaned back, and admired the view. Already there were hundreds of stars visible, with only a few dim patches obscured by passing clouds. “Wow,” he whispered.

“Good surprise?” Adam asked, bumping his shoulder against Justin’s.

“Definitely,” Justin agreed with a nod.

And there they sat shoulder-to-shoulder, enjoying the beautiful night and admiring the stars. One or the other would occasionally break the silence to point out a particularly bright star or a passing satellite, and they made up names for groups of stars and constellations whose names they’d never learned, growing up as they had in big cities where the night sky was rarely visible. After ten or fifteen minutes had passed, and their eyes had fully adjusted to the dark, Justin felt Adam straighten up next to him.

“Dude, is that...?”

Justin turned to try and see what had caught Adam’s attention. “What, bro?”

“I think that’s the Milky Way!” He grabbed for Justin’s hand, then held it up to point in the right direction. “I’ve only seen it in, like, nature documentaries on Netflix. Do you think that’s really it?”

“Yeah, I think so,” Justin agreed.

“Bro, I’m so glad I’m here with you,” Adam said, squeezing their still-joined hands. “You’re always looking out for everyone else, I wanted to do something for you.”

Justin was confused. “What do you mean? You’ve always got my back, dude. You asked me to be your roommate, like, the day after we met. You’re always looking out for me.”

“Well, that’s because you’re my favourite person.”

“Same, Holtzy,” Justin agreed.

“No,” Adam said, shifting so he was no longer leaning on Justin’s shoulder but partly facing him, “Not like a Best Bro. I mean, you are my best bro, but it’s more than that. Or, I hope it can be?”

Justin felt Adam’s fingers trail along his cheek before coming to rest along his jaw. Adam’s thumb brushed the corner of his mouth before he whispered, even closer than he’d been before, “May I?”

Justin nodded in agreement, suddenly unsure of his own voice.

Adam leaned in, and on the first try their noses bonked together in the dark, causing them both to laugh. On his second attempt, though, he found his target, and they met with a soft press of lips, and then again, and again.

Justin was filled with a profound sense of rightness, and when Adam pulled back slightly to take a deep breath, Justin pulled his hand from where it was still gripped in Adam’s hand to grab ahold of Adam’s waist and pull him closer. “Come back here,” he croaked.

“Yeah?” Adam voice was a low whisper in his ear.

“Yeah, definitely.” Justin confirmed, reaching up with his free hand to grasp the brim of Adam’s/his snapback. “Can I?”

Adam’s hand came up to join Justin’s, quickly tugging off the hat and dropping it in his lap. “Now, where were we?” he asked.

With the hat out of the way, Justin slid his hand around to the back of Adam’s head, and tugged him forward and down until their noses brushed together again. “Right here,” he said as their lips met again. They traded kisses again, soft at first before becoming longer and deeper, and Justin tasted their shared toothpaste in Adam’s mouth. Justin’s left hand roamed and explored the muscles of Adam’s back as they kissed, while the other kept a firm grasp on Adam’s jaw.

Adam pulled back slightly to press a line of kisses to Justin’s jaw and then down his neck, while his right hand trailed lightly up and down Justin’s arm. Justin felt his whole body shiver in response. “Cold?” Adam asked, hands coming to rest on Justin’s bare shoulders, thumbs on the hem of his short-sleeved tee.

“Nn...” Justin cleared his throat and tried again, “Not cold, that just felt really,”—kiss—“really, good.”

“Well in that case,” Adam rumbled, his lips just below Justin’s jaw, “I’m happy to continue.”

“Please,” Justin agreed.

Permission granted, Adam resumed his attention to Justin’s neck before returning to his mouth. They continued to make out for long minutes, and as the intensity naturally ebbed, they paused to catch their breath, bodies still pressed together as close as could be while sitting side-by-side on a cement roof.

Justin looked up again at the display of stars overhead, and couldn’t resist saying, “Dude, you had me seeing stars in more ways than one.”

Adam groaned in his ear. “That was a truly bad line,” he said before pressing a few more kisses to Justin’s cheek.

“It still worked on you,” Justin persisted. “Admit it, Mr Rom-Coms and Musicals, you love a cheesy line.” 

“Who, me?” Adam laughed.

“Yeah, you,” Justin elbowed him lightly.

“I admit nothing,” Adam insisted, as he shifted to sit behind Justin and wrap both arms around his torso, “Except that this is nice.”

“Nice, eh?” “Do you have a different word in mind?”

“Well, I would’ve said really fucking hot? It’s been a long time since I’ve made out with someone like that, and even longer since I did it sober. So yeah, really hot. But this, the cuddling, is really nice, too.” Justin added, while the over-thinking part of his brain came back online and realized what he’d blurted out while his brain-to-mouth filter was disengaged.

Adam seemed to take it in stride though, giving Justin a gentle squeeze. “Glad you agree.” He took a deep breath before continuing, “Think you’d want to keep doing it?”

“The making out? Or the cuddling? I think we may have already been doing that part?” Justin asked.

“Both? But also, umm, dating? Umm, if you’d like that. I know we’ve got another 5 or 6 weeks on this shoot, so it’s not like we’d have tons of time to do things properly, and since we’re already living together things might get kinda awkward, but...” he shrugged.

“Hey,” Justin said, half-turning in Adam’s arms to put a hand on his face. Since it was too dark to see each other’s expressions, he tried to convey his sincerity with his touch and voice as he continued, “I’d like that. Dating. And I trust us, that we can figure it out.”

“Okay. Dating. Good.”

“Good,” Justin agreed, pressing a light kiss to the corner of Adam’s mouth before settling back in his arms again. He’d never dated anyone taller and bigger than him before, and it felt really good to be held so securely. 

They sat in silence for a few minutes longer, enjoying each other’s company and the view, before Adam cleared his throat. “So I don’t really want to leave, but I think it’s getting late? And I think they’re locking up the gym at midnight again, so unless we want to sleep on the floor of the HMU trailer, we probably need to get going?”

Justin groaned, but realized Adam was right, so he slowly got to his feet and then pulled Adam up to join him. “I’m getting too old to sleep on a concrete roof or a tile floor, gym mat it is. Although I’d very much like to get you in a real bed sometime soon, if you’re agreeable.”

“Very agreeable,” Adam said, tugging Justin close once again. “But if you keep saying things like that I may get distracted, and then we really will get locked out.”

“Okay, c’mon,” Justin said, taking a half-step back then reaching to grab Adam’s hand, and slowly leading the way back around the corner and towards the sliver of light marking the doorway. 

They made their way back downstairs, back out the service exit, and across the parking lot, arriving at the gym with a whole ten minutes to spare. Justin thanked the night security guy, and paused outside the gym door to release the grip he still had on Adam’s hand before made their way once again to the far corner of the gym. Most of their group was already asleep, but a mat was still free next to Tony’s, so they made themselves comfortable, settling in again side-by-side for the night. A few minutes later, once all but the emergency lights had been switched off, Justin rolled on his side and shuffled closer to Adam. Peeking around quickly to ensure no one was watching – they’d decided on the walk over that it was too soon to tell the crew with all the chirping that would entail, they wanted to keep things to themselves for a little while – he pressed a quick kiss to Adam’s lips before whispering a quiet goodnight. Adam reached again for his hand, laced their fingers together, and held on until they fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Isn't that artwork adorable?


	6. Chapter 6

**July 31, 7:43am. Day 2 of unanticipated downtime**

Justin woke up slowly, feeling warm and cozy. As his brain came online, he realized Adam was spooning him on their shared gym mat. Right, _That_ had happened. It seemed their sleeping selves were already comfortable with what his awake brain had just come to accept. As he lay there, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, and it took him a moment to realize this meant that maybe there was a signal? He slid out the phone, saw a slew of incoming notifications had arrived, and started to swipe through them. So many emails to his professional account. Social media. A few concerned texts from his mom and sisters, even one from his auntie Ayowumi. Notifications from his phone and power companies, suggesting service was restored. His motions while reading must have awakened Adam, who tightened his grip around Justin’s waist, tugging him back against Adam’s solid chest. _Just a few more minutes,_ Justin thought, closing his eyes again to enjoy a few more minutes cuddling with his best bro?... boyfriend?... his Adam. The real world could wait a few more minutes.

It was only a few minutes before others started stirring around them, and the gym slowly came to life. As they got up and made their way back to basecamp, they saw signs that power was restored in the buildings they passed. 

As the group assembled in the tent and dug into the eggs Eric had prepared, conversation turned to what came next. They compared notifications and texts and scoured media reports, and came to a consensus that power seemed to have been restored to all of Boston and the surrounding area. Water was flowing again (though with boil water advisories), gas stations were pumping, and some stores were starting to open. With this confirmation most of the crew decided to head to their homes, while Adam, Justin, and River stayed on-site to make plans to resume shooting as soon as possible. They made the usual calls to Alicia/Hall/the main office, and everyone agreed to restart the next morning if the rink was useable. 

While River reached out to the hockey players, Adam and Justin walked over to Faber again to speak to Johnson. Adam returned the key he’d borrowed, to which Johnson replied with usual cryptic comment about being happy to see the plot progressing. He also confirmed that the cooling systems were back online and pumping. The ice surface hadn’t been disturbed so he was hopeful the watery slush would refreeze correctly and be ready for use the next day, but it was too soon to tell. With promises to check in mid-afternoon, they returned to the trailer. River had confirmed the hockey players would be available to work into the weekend if needed (it seems that with ECHL salaries being what they were, a few weeks at SAG rates were a lucrative prospect), and was getting a start on tentative call sheets. All three men spent the remainder of the morning checking in with crew and talent, responding to backlogged messages, and finalizing reports about the blackout days before grabbing lunch at the university cafeteria. There was no need for Eric to stay just for the few remaining crew, so after breakfast they gave him the rest of the day off, and he took off shortly after the others. Adam swore he heard Eric making plans with Jack for private baking lessons.

Just after 2:30pm Johnson called Adam to advise that the ice was freezing up properly, and that it would be ready to use the next morning. Adam got the go-ahead from main office, Justin gave final approval to the call sheet, and River hit send. After a flurry of texts and emails with all of the department heads, core cast, and hockey players, they were all ready to go by 4pm. Justin dismissed River with thanks for all of his work, before sliding up next to Adam.

“Hi,” he said, wrapping his arms around Adam’s waist, “I missed you.”

“Missed me? But we’ve been together all day!” Adam smirked, but wrapped his arms around Justin’s shoulders, actions belying his words.

“Yeah, but that was work. I missed this,” Justin said, followed by a soft kiss to the corner of Adam’s mouth. 

Adam returned the kiss, and they spent the next few minutes trading lazy kisses before Justin tucked his head into the side of Adam’s neck. Adam’s arms tightened around his shoulders, and Justin felt himself let out a deep breath, settling into Adam’s solid embrace. The early days of a new or potential relationship usually saw him on edge, mind swirling with questions and what-ifs, yet here he was feeling safe and secure. And eager to have some truly alone time with his man. “Sooo,” he said, “you took me on an amazing date last night, now it’s my turn to return the favour.”

“What did you have in mind?” Adam asked.

“Well, if there are any restaurants open with safe food I could take you out, otherwise I say we grab the rest of Bitty’s leftovers and head home. You do have a truly comfortable couch,” he said with a soft nip to Adam’s earlobe.

“Mmm,” Adam groaned in agreement, “that sounds like an excellent idea. No need to deal with Boston traffic or the risk of food poisoning, just you, me, and Netflix. Or I could kick your ass in MarioKart again.”

“In your dreams, bro,” Justin said, pulling back to glare at Adam. “You’re going down!”

“Not on the racetrack, but maybe …” Adam wiggled his eyebrows.

Justin laughed. God help him, the cheesy line and ridiculous eyebrow-waggle actually seemed to work on him, since he’d fallen for this ridiculous man. Stepping back to grab his bag, he turned to the door. “Race you to the car?”

And they were off.


	7. Chapter 7

**Epilogue**   
**Sept14th, 1130pm. _Lucky Shot_ Wrap Party**

_If I speak, they are condemned...If I stay silent, I am damned!_

Justin leaned back against the bench seat, attention focused on Adam on stage. _Damn, my boy can sing_, he thought. He’d heard Adam sing before, a few lines in the shower or jamming along to a playlist in the car, but not like this. Adam was pouring his heart into lyrics he clearly knew by heart, as he strode across the stage without a glance at the monitor, oblivious to the noise of the crowd. All of his passion and energy were focused on sharing one of the most iconic songs in Broadway history from his second-favourite musical.

Principal photography had wrapped two days prior, after their block of shooting at the sound stage, and the entire cast and crew were packed into a pub back in Boston proper. Their teams had pulled it off, and Justin and Adam wanted to thank them with a proper send-off, so they had insisted on taking the lead on planning an epic wrap party, somehow squeezing party-planning into their schedules in the final weeks of shooting (with much thanks to Samira and the crew at the main office who could actually make logistics calls during business hours). And it had been a kick-ass party thus far, starting with the requisite powerpoint of silly photos, then dinner, and dancing to Justin’s curated playlist. At this point in the evening, groups were spread around the room, with most of the Blackout Crew (as Adam had dubbed them) clustered around the karaoke stage in the corner. They’d gone through the usual songs from classic rock (Dex) to Beyoncé (Bitty), until Holster insisted it was showtunes time. He began to the usual heckles, but as the song progressed, with the agony of the character’s struggle clear in his voice as the lyrics built, the Crew fell silent in rapt attention.

_And so Javert you see it’s true, this man bears no more guilt than you. Who am I? 24601!_

Adam finished on an impressive sustained falsetto, followed by loud cheers from the Crew. Shrugging off their praise, he left the stage, and flopped next to Justin on the corner bench seat.

“Bro,” Justin said as he slung an arm around Adam’s shoulders, “that was really good!”

“Yeah?” Adam asked.

“Yeah, Holtzy. You’re amazing. I mean,” Justin continued, turning so their faces were nearly touching, “you already were amazing, but you’re an amazing singer, too!” As he spoke, Justin was hit by a sudden realization. Adam really was amazing, as a singer and a colleague, yes, but especially as a boyfriend. Before he could get stuck in anxiety-brain, he let himself blurt it out, “I love you.”

“Wha...?” Adam’s eyebrows rose.

Justin took a deep breath before repeating himself, staring into Adam’s eyes with his voice as calm and steady as he could make it, “I love you, Holtzy. Adam. I know it’s hasn’t even been a couple months, but I mean it.”

“...” Adam’s mouth opened and closed, soundless for once. Just behind him another Beyoncé song had started, but neither of them noticed.

“Bro? Are you ok? Was that not ok?” Justin asked, pulling back a few centimetres.

Adam twitched his head quickly, as if rebooting his brain. “No—I mean, yes. Yes, it’s ok. Of course. More than ok”—he nodded vigorously—”because I’m in love with you, too.”

“Oh thank fuck,” Justin let out the breath he’d been holding. He wrapped his hand around the back of Adam’s neck, drawing him closer. “God, I really want to kiss you right now.”

“So let’s do it,” Adam said with a waggle of his eyebrows, “We’re not their bosses anymore.”

“You sure?” Justin asked.

Adam leaned in. “Totally,” he confirmed, just before their lips met.

Justin lost himself in the kiss, tugging Adam as close as he could and holding on tight as Adam nipped at his lower lip before their tongues slid together. As the karaoke song ended behind them, someone noticed them making out. Almost immediately the whole Crew was whistling and chirping about fines and bets, but Justin ignored them all. He’d come to Boston four months ago for a kickass job opportunity and not only rocked that, but found this, someone he loved who loved him back. They’d survived an intense and exhausting three-month shoot as coworkers and roommates-turned-partners and still liked each other, and he was confident they could tackle whatever came next. Justin already had two gigs lined up in Toronto before the end of the year while Adam had one in Boston, but they’d already mapped out their schedules and when they would have blocks of time to visit each other. Justin’s mother had already extracted a promise that Adam would join them over Christmas, then they planned to make use of the industry’s holiday downtime to spend a few nights together at Niagara Falls (cheesy as hell, yeah, but they couldn’t resist). For once Justin wasn’t worried, he knew they could continue to figure it out, together.

The End!  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!
> 
> Please go give [mpmi81](https://mpmi81.tumblr.com/) love for all of the amazing artwork she created for this work!
> 
> You can find me on [tumblr](https://redneterp.tumblr.com/), too.


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